How AL$ is Helping Students

CSU Affordable Learning Solutions (AL$) enables interested faculty to locate and adopt more affordable, quality educational content for their students. By reducing CSU student course material expenses, more students acquire the course materials they need to succeed and benefit from their CSU learning experience. Now, CSU faculty and students have greater access to quality free and low-cost learning materials through a variety of AL$ programs and partnerships listed above.

Since the inception of the AL$ program in 2010, the estimated student savings on textbooks throughout the CSU has been over $230,000,000. We request savings reports from the campus bookstores, AL$ campus coordinators, and in the past from several of our vendor partners. We rely on the voluntary support from each CSU campus and this past year the majority of the campuses participated in AL$ programs.

CSU Library Resources

Did you know, your CSU library has a wealth of resources and expertise free for students? Your campus library can provide students with access to the highest quality electronic books, online scholarly journal articles, streaming audio and video, and other material for instructional uses -- all at no cost. Your library’s collection of electronic books and journal articles can be especially useful in upper division classes where textbooks are not available to cover the more specialized curriculum.

CSU Campus Bookstore Resources

CSU campus bookstores provide many services including working with course material providers to provide traditional print textbooks, eTextbooks, and other learning material options. Your campus store offers its students and faculty multiple choices whether you are looking for new-used-rental print textbooks, eTextbooks, adaptive courseware or custom publishing resources. CSU campus bookstores have search tools available that assist students in finding the most affordable options available for the course materials they require for their classes.